Mangia Mamma: Marionberry Bundt with Blueberry Curd #BundtaMonth

Maria Portokalos: It's a cake! I know! Thank you! Thank you very, very much.

[whispering to Aunt Freida]

Maria Portokalos: There's a hole in this cake!

-My Big Fat Greek Wedding

Bundt cakes have always been a staple in our family. My Grandma Pitalo had numerous delicious recipes- many of which been handed down to me, and Grandma Aziz' one cake that I can remember her making was baked in a bundt pan. This being said, I was intrigued by My Catholic Kitchen's "Bundt a Month" posting. There are at least 15 other bloggers who take up this challenge. I figured with all my bundt heredity, I might as well get on board.

All ready to start!

After parusing some of the recipes as well as my stock of frozen berries, I decided upon something with marionberries since they are not only delicious but also very local, these being from our friends at Fordyce Farms. I had made some blueberry curd a few weeks ago, and I thought it would make a nice topping.

Getting ready to "bundt"

Getting it together was a breeze. I, for once, had all the ingredients on hand. After getting the batter ready, it went into the pan just perfectly- for me that basically means not slopping it all over me! Popping it in the oven, I was able to clean up the dishes I used (a Keatley house rule just re-established yesterday) and get dressed for work while the yummy smell came from the oven. The timer went off and I happily pulled it out. Waiting the 15 minutes called for, I then turned it over using the same technique I've been using since I starting baking, some 40 years or so ago. Much to my chagrin, as I lifted the pan from the cake plate, some of the berry bundt goodness had stuck to the pan.

The bundt enjoying the flowers and sunshine

I decided I would put it back together and hope for the best. Pouring the blueberry curd on top helped it look a little better as did taking it outside for its' photo shoot. The kids and I then headed off to work knowing we'd get to taste it after dinner. On the way home, David, who only has 3 1/2 months until he leaves for school at Christendom College in Virginia, asked about stopping at the store for ice cream. Finding out that Umpqua was on sale for just $2.99 at Roth's (and that David was going to pay for it), we did stop. After a delicious dinner of pasta alfredo with veggies, we were all ready to dig in to the bundt- with ice cream, of course. I knew I had hit upon something good when David commented, "Oh mom, you did so this right!".

So now's your chance to do this so right. Take some time and make a bundt soon- for someone you care about. It may have a hole in the middle, but it'll be remembered for how good it tastes!

A bundt is even better with ice cream

Marionberry Bundt with Blueberry Curd

3 cups plus 1 tablespoon all purpose flour
1 cup butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup shortening, at room temperature
3 cups sugar
5 eggs, at room temperature
1 cup milk
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 1/2 cups frozen marionberries (can use fresh if available)

Set a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat oven to 350F. Coat a 10-inch tube pan with nonstick spray. Cream the butter and shortening together in the bowl of an electric mixer. add the sugar and beat on medium speed until the mixture is light and fluffy, at least 5 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time beating well after each addition. In a seperate bowl, sift together the 3 cups flour, baking powder, and salt. With the mixer on low, add a third of the flour mixture. Then add half of the milk, then the flour again and continue until everything is mixed in, and ending with the flour mixture. Add the vanilla extract. Toss berries with 1 tablespoon flour. Gently fold into batter. Spoon into the pan and bake for 1 hour or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool in pan for 10-15 minutes then unmold onto serving plate. Pour blueberry curd over cake.

Blueberry Curd

1 cup blueberries
1 tablespoon water
3/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter
1/2 teaspoon each cinnamon & nutmeg
3 eggs, lightly beaten

Put blueberries and water in saucepan and cook over low heat until blueberries are very soft, about 10 minutes.

Press mixture through a fine mesh sieve and put liquid back into saucepan off of the heat. Add remaining ingredients and cook on medium-low heat, stirring constantly until mixture is thickened, about 5 minutes. The curd will continue to thicken as it cools. Place in 1/2 pint jars and finish cooling. Refrigerate for up to 1 month.

If you have a facebook page, you can follow along. You can also check out the hundreds of recipes on the Pinterest board- that's where I can be found, sometimes too much-

Here are the other recipes~

Blueberry Banana Bundt by Veronica at My Catholic Kitchen

Blueberry Buttermilk Cake by Lora at Cake Duchess

Blueberry Coconut Bundt by Jennie at The Messy Baker Blog

Blueberry Cream Cheese Bundt Cake by Anuradha at Baker Street

Blueberry Orange Baby Bundts by Anne at From My Sweet Heart

Lemon Berry Bundt Cake by Heather at Hezzi D’s Books and Cooks

Lemon Berry Bundt by Holly at A Baker’s House

Lemon Raspberry Bundlets by Kate at Food Babbles

Lemon Rhubarb Bundt Cake with Blueberries by Laura at The Spiced Life

Lemon Blueberry Yogurt Bundt Cake by Karen at In the Kitchen With KP

Orange Blueberry Yogurt Bundt Cake by Renee at Magnolia Days